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January 18, 2003, Chandigarh, India |
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St Columba’s boy rescued New Delhi, January 17 The police have arrested two persons, Senthil and Jayaraj, in this connection and efforts were being made to trace the four other persons involved in the kidnapping. The Joint Commissioner of Police (New Delhi), Mr B. K. Gupta, said initially the police did not have any information about the kidnappers. However, during preliminary investigations the police found out that the kidnappers were known to the child. A ransom call for Rs 35 lakh was received by the child’s father, Praveen Kumar. The call was traced to Jaipur and different police teams were dispatched to Rajasthan. After receiving three ransom calls, the police concluded that the calls emanated from someplace between Jaipur and Ajmer. Later, the police arrested one person, who was in constant touch with the kidnappers in Rajasthan. Technical investigations revealed that the kidnappers were South Indians. Since the driver of the school vehicle, Balam, is also a South Indian, his help was sought and he also identified the accused. Based on this information, the police picked up two others, Senthil and Jayaraj, who disclosed that Mangesh was the mastermind behind the kidnapping and another person, Kannan, was guarding the child at a hideout in Karol Bagh in Delhi. When the police reached the spot, Kannan had already fled from the hideout with two other associates. Interrogation of the accused revealed that on the morning of January 15, Mangesh and two others came in a Tata Qualis and disappeared with Shivam. It is learnt that the kidnappers were taxi operators who badly needed money as they were paying heavy interest on bank loans. The Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi), Mr Manoj Lal, said the DIG, Ajmer, Mr Dinesh Sharma, the DIG, Udaipur, Mr Alok Tripathi, and the SSP, Jaipur city (North), Mr Anand Srivastava, cooperated with the Delhi police in securing the release of the child. |
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NCR SPECIAL Panipat, January 17 On July 19, 2001, gas leakage from an LPG tanker on the GT Road had resulted in a major tragedy. The gas leak had resulted in a major fire, which gutted a nearby carpet factory and a dhaba besides the nearby fields. As many as 10 passersby had perished in the blaze. The fire personnel, it may be recalled, stood by as mute spectators. It was only when the flames had subsided that the fire personnel got into action. Timely action and sophisticated equipment at hand could have saved precious lives and the damage caused to property. In the wake of the tragedy, the then Fire Officer, Mr Bhagwan Dass Ahuja, had prepared a detailed report on the upgradation of the fire service in the city. Mr Ahuja, in his report, had reportedly called for the induction of more fire engines with a view to strengthening the fire service as the fire engines at that time were outdated. Besides recommending the induction of state-of-the-art equipment, Mr Ahuja had called for shifting the fire station from the Old Industrial Area near Hali Park to a spacious area along the GT Road so that the response time for attending to such an emergency could be minimum. Currently, making it to the site of the fire on the GT Road and other areas nearby, where a majority of the handloom units are located, is quite a task as the fire engines have to pass through narrow roads and the Assandh flyover, which is always overcrowded. However, the Ahuja report, like several other ambitious projects, has been gathering dust. The only recommendation of the report that seems to have been taken care of is the induction of a couple of new fire engines. But again, these fall woefully short in meeting the demands of the ever-expanding industrial city. Besides this, what exposes the handloom city to the risk of fire due to petroleum products is the fact that it is a transit point for hundreds of tankers taking petro products to and from Delhi. Since Panipat Refinery is situated near here, supplies are sent to the entire northwestern region. On an average, about 500 oil tankers pass through the GT Road daily. A large number of petrol stations and factories storing inflammable handloom products and raw material are situated on the GT Road. In case of a petro product fire, they would be at a huge risk. |
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Purpose
of remand not punitive: Court Rohtak, January 17 Dr Sharma said that cases of extortion were on the rise. For orderly existence of the society, such persons had to be dealt with a very heavy hand. Rejecting the argument of the petitioner that he was not named in the FIR, Dr Sharma said that in such cases, it was not possible to name the accused in the FIR. Delay in lodging the FIR was also unavoidable in such cases because what was at stake was not money but life also. The petitioner and his companions extended threats but were nabbed before they could execute their threat. According to the prosecution, the owner of a ‘rewari’ (sesame candy) manufacturing unit, Mr Subhash Gupta, received a call on his mobile from another mobile (94160-83611). The caller had asked the complainant to pay him Rs 5 lakh or face dire consequences. The caller also asked the complainant to contact him on his mobile and reach Tilyar Lake along with the money. The caller again called on phone No. 37000, asking the complainant to send the money to Tilyar Lake. Seeking bail, the petitioner had argued that he was innocent and had been implicated, that there was a delay of one day in lodging the FIR, that the petitioner was not named in the FIR, that the petitioner had been in custody since December 3, 2002, and that the offence of extortion was complete only after delivery and that in this case it was at best a case of attempt. The public prosecutor opposed the bail application alleging that cases of extortion and ransom were increasing and bail should not be allowed to the petitioner. |
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DDA plans to turn park into concrete New Delhi, January 17 The DDA has exerted its ownership rights over the park and wants to construct a parking lot and a market. The latter will house small traders and vendors who are currently operating from public land. Recently, a group of senior DDA officials descended at the seven-acre park — which boasts of carefully manicured lawns and 2000 healthy trees, most of them planted by the VIPs of the Capital — to take physical possession of the site. However, senior citizens immediately swung into action and persuaded senior MCD officers to reach the spot and thwart the move. After several hours of heated exchange, the arguments ended in a stalemate. The public spirited citizens who toiled for months to give shape to the green lungs of the area, comprising Greater Kailash, Chittaranjan Park and Hemkunt Colony, have now left the matter to the wisdom of the two
bodies. According to Mr. Kanwar Mittal of Paharpur Business Centre, an agreement was signed with the MCD in 1996. Soon after, many residents were involved in giving the park a shape, which over the years has become a haven for morning walkers and nature lovers. The air quality in the otherwise congested area has considerably improved because of the park. Mr. Mittal said that if the park is relocated, pollution will definitely go up in the area. He said that the DDA was aware all along that the park was being developed with the help of the MCD but for some strange reason had kept quiet. Perhaps, it had something to do with the fact that some of the trees were planted by then Lt. Governor, Mr. Tejinder Khanna, who was also the ex-officio chairman of the DDA. The park became so popular that at least 100 ambassadors and high commissioners were invited to plant trees there. Chopping them down to provide space for a parking lot and a market would be an insult to all the VIPs, several residents of the area felt. |
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Eight murders in a fortnight Faridabad, January 17 In the latest incident of murder, which took place yesterday in the posh Sector 14 here,
Sangeeta, wife of an industrialist, was hammered to death in her house. The middle-aged woman was alone when an unidentified person entered the house at about 2 pm and attacked her with a hammer which he was carrying. The accused left the hammer on the spot and fled. The deceased’s husband was away at his factory in Sector 4 at that time. When he came to his house for lunch he found his wife lying in a pool of blood. The dog squad and fingerprint experts rushed to the house but the police are reported to be clueless. |
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Holy cow! 35 of them die at gaushala Panipat, January 17 The deaths, including seven on Thursday, have shocked residents of Sithana village. The villagers also alleged that caretakers for the more than 300 cows were insufficient and the cows had died on account of starvation and inadequate care in the chilly weather. It may be recalled that the society has about 92 acres of land. The land was donated to the society by the devout. Sixty acres have been given on contract for farming. Villagers have alleged that despite the fact that the society’s income runs into several lakhs, cow are not taken care of, which led to the death of 35 cows. Mr Hari Om Tayal, president of the society, denied there was any shortage of fodder. He, however, conceded that some cows might have died due to the severe cold. |
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Fog returns with a vengeance New Delhi, January 17 Earlier in the day temperature shot up by about three degrees, providing much-needed respite to the Capital. The minimum temperature stood at 6.2 degree Celsius, one degree below normal, as against yesterday’s 3.5 degrees. Chilly winds, however, continued to blow. Even though the fog had cleared by 10 a.m. on Friday, air and surface traffic remained disrupted. The Met Department has blamed the circulatory system for bringing in the clouds and causing foggy conditions. |
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15 hurt in mishap caused by fog Sonepat: Traffic remained jammed on the GT Road near Qumashpur village for an hour today following an accident, which happened due to the thick layer of fog disrupting visibility, in which four vehicles were involved. At least 15 persons, including four women, were injured. Three of the seriously injured have been sent to Delhi for further treatment. Two injured persons belonged to Gurgaon and all others belonged to Panipat. Four persons were injured in another accident on the Sonepat-Rohtak road near Sisana village. One of them was sent to Delhi for further treatment. Others are undergoing treatment in a private hospital at Kharkhauda town. |
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Special courts sought for Tihar undertrials New Delhi, January 17 At present, there are 12,000 undertrials in Tihar Jail though its capacity is to house only 4,000 prisoners. Once the new jails are constructed, the capacity of Tihar Jail will be increased to nearly 15,000. Director-General (Prisons) Ajay Agrawal said that four jails having a capacity to house about 2,600 prisoners would be completed by this year-end and four others with a capacity of about 8,000 would be ready in the next two years. While three jail units (6B capacity - 350 inmates, 6C capacity - 598 inmates and 6D capacity - 598 inmates) would be commissioned inside the Tihar complex, a jail was being constructed in Rohini, which would have a capacity to house 1,052 prisoners. A jail complex as big as Tihar had been sanctioned in the Mandoli area, which could house 3,585 inmates. Mr Agrawal said decks had been cleared for the 27.7232-hectare jail complex of six jails in Mandoli with the Delhi Government clearing it. The construction was expected to start soon. Acquisition of land was under process for three more jails, which had been agreed upon at Baprola in South Delhi, Ghitorni in Dwarka area of South-West Delhi and Narela in North-West Delhi. Addressing the annual conference, the Director General of Prisons said appointment of police officials and other staff for the three new jail wings in Tihar was in progress. The security staff for the jails would be from the Tamil Nadu Armed Forces. He said despite all the deficiencies, Tihar managed to function well during 2002 when there was a rise of about 1,000 prisoners compared to the previous year, which was unusual keeping in view the past year’s statistics. Last year, he pointed out, the total number of prisoners at Tihar had touched 13,000 at one time. The DG expressed hope that the special courts would be set up soon after the scheduled visit of Chief Justice of India V. N. Khare to Tihar Jail on January 25. Cases of undertrials facing imprisonment of up to three years were being taken up by the special courts, which had started functioning at Tihar Court Complex since May last year, he said. During 30 sittings, the special courts released 2,127 prisoners, he said. The undertrials eligible for this facility should be first-timers, non-professional criminals and who are ready to confess their crime, he said. |
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Dehat Morcha gheraoes collectorate Ghaziabad, January 17 A large number of Dehat Morcha workers had gone to support Modi Cloth Mill workers in their struggle for getting their arrears from the Modi Cloth Mill in Modi Nagar, a week ago. Owing to the Chief Minister Mayawati’s birthday bash in New Delhi, most of the district police force and administration officers had been busy in the arrangements there. It was a small police force which had been deployed to control the situation in Ghaziabad Collectorate. The Dehat Morcha which had announced their plan to gherao the collectorate on January 15, handed over their memorandum to the ADM (City), Mr Raj Kumar Sachan, and gave the administration time till January 27 to fulfil their demands. The workers had come in tractor trolleys to the collectorate from 11 am to 1 pm. In his address, Raj Kumar Bhatti, one of the main leaders, said that the administration is trying to terrorise those who lead the struggle for the rights of farmers and workers, by sending them to jail. “But this high-handedness will not affect the determination to carry on our struggle,” Mr Bhatti said. It is alleged that the administration has registered false cases against Dehat Morcha leaders at the behest of Modi Mill management. |
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Poison
case mired in row Noida, January 17 Both the police stations are not registering the murder report due to a ‘jurisdiction dispute’. Sajida, a resident of Enta-Rodi area of Bulandshahr was married to a youth of Topchi Ware area of Meerut on March 10, 2002. Sajida’s father, Salimuddin, was a head constable in PAC. Salimuddin’s widow Zalis Khatun had married her daughter somehow. She alleged that Sajida’s in-laws had tortured her after the marriage. Her daughter had been informing her of the maltreatment. On December 29, Zalis was informed that her daughter had died. Her body was recovered from Delohi’s Lok Nayak Hospital where it was confirmed that she had been poisoned. Since December 30, 2002, Zalis Khatun had given written complaints reporting her daughter’s murder and met senior police officers in Bulandshahr and Meerut but of no avail. |
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Special focus on Jhajjar/Bahadurgarh Drought Jhajjar, January 17 Official sources said here today that the process of identifying the agriculture areas where crops withered due to the monsoon failure had begun. The compensation could be given according to ‘khevats’, for a change, and not as per the khasra numbers. The sources informed that after the re-assessment of these different areas, they would be compensated under different ratio. The strange fact in the move is that Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala had declared the entire state drought-hit on July 31 in Bahadurgarh. He had also ordered to conduct a special girdawari of the affected crops. However, in the girdawari, 76 per cent of the crops in Jhajjar were declared damaged due to drought. But after sometime, Mr Chautala retracted from his announcement and the district administration also declared only 9 per cent crops as drought-affected. On this occasion, the government released compensation for the damaged crops in most of the districts, but Jhajjar got only a nominal share due to the lowered damage rate. This compensation was given as per the khasra records. As the khasra records show only 9 per cent damage, the administration is now considering to provide compensation according to ‘khevats’ (ownership), after it came under attack from the opposition political parties and the affected farmers. When contacted, the official sources maintained that although the crop failure was reported at 76 per cent following the special girdawari, the late monsoon, which arrived immediately after the girdawari, saved the dying crops and the actual damage was much less. After reviewing the drought situation, it was found that only 9 per cent of the crops had been affected, these sources said. However, according to inside sources, in a meeting of the district level officials held two days ago, the administration decided to compensate the farmers and asked the officials concerned to suggest how to compensate the farmers as the khasra numbers have been filled. Mr Jagdish Rai Kuashik, state general secretary of the Rashtriya Lok Dal, questioned the intentions of the government. He said that it was an injustice to the farmers of this district as the administration had declared 76 per cent damage in its report. He held that it was not possible that the rains reduced the crop damage from 76 per cent to 9 per cent.  |
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Shortage
of staff hits roadways’ services; commuters suffer Jhajjar, January 17 The passengers’ misery is also reflected on the exchequer of the state government as inadequate services also result in the loss of revenue. According to the department sources, the roadways depot here is short of the staff required against the buses with the depot. The posts of 21 drivers and about 22 conductors have been lying vacant in the depot for long. As a result, a fleet of 25 buses remains parked in the roadways workshop here. The official sources say that the total posts of drivers and conductors are 186 and 182 respectively, while there are only 165 drivers and 160 conductors with the depot right now. Due to this, about 25 buses cannot be plied at all. There are 135 buses available with the depot, of which 110 buses are being run on different routes. Mr Satish Katyal, general manager of the depot, said here today that the depot had suffered a loss of Rs 17 lakh in December due to the staff shortage. The loss was Rs 25 lakh in the previous month. He said that he had been writing to the higher authorities from time to time to fill the vacancies but had not got any response so far. The hardships of commuters on the approach roads, which connect the villages with the district headquarters, are severe. The government has issued permits to the cooperative societies to ply buses on these roads. However, instead of plying the buses on the sanctioned routes, private bus operators affiliated with the cooperative societies follow more viable and direct routes. |
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Forest
dept workers to hold six-day dharna Sonepat, January 17 Giving this information, Mr Anand Sharma, general secretary of the union told mediapersons here today that the employees would organise dharnas in front of the district forest offices at Rewari and Kurukshetra on January 20, Rohtak, Jhajjar and Yamunanagar on January 21, Bhiwani and Panchkula on January 22, Hissar, Fatehabad and Ambala on January 23, Sirsa and Kaithal on January 24 and Jind on January 27 next. Similar dharnas would be organised in front of the divisional forest offices at Gurgaon (February 4), Hissar (February 10), Ambala (February 27), Panchkula (February 18) and Rohtak (February 24). The union, he said, would launch an indefinite dharna from March 10 in front of the Commissioner and Secretary of Forest Department at Chandigarh to press for the demands of the employees. Mr Sharma also highlighted the demands of the union and said that the state government had failed to accept them in spite of repeated representations made to it. The main demands, among other things, include the regularisation of the services of the workers who have completed 240-day service, confirmation of the employees who have completed five to 10 years of service, implementation of all labour laws, providing of attendance slips, wage slips and identity cards, providing the facility of ESI and Provident Fund ban on the retrenchments, payment of wages on 7th of every month, starting of muster rolls system and ban on the contract system. He disclosed that a countrywide demonstration would be held on February 2 in front of the Lok Sabha in which lakhs of workers would take part. |
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THE ACHIEVERS New Delhi, January 17 Since then, this organisation has incorporated an approach of holistic rehabilitation of disabled people. According to the founder chairman of the organisation, Mr Vimal
Oberoi, they have been striving to achieve the goal of total rehabilitation of the poor and physically challenged people, especially women and children by providing them free artificial limbs, functional braces, polio calipers, wheel chairs, tricycles, crutches and vocational training in different fields. At present, OPCAR has three functional
centres. Apart from Delhi, Nalagarh (Solan) and Damoh (MP) in the heart of tribal and backward areas are running quite well. Damoh centre is being run by Dr Ramkrishna
Kusumaria, an agricultural scientist. He has shaped many lives by giving handicapped people artificial limbs, tricycles and hearing aids. He is also toying with the idea of starting a rehabilitation centre here so that the disabled could make themselves self-reliant. Mr Oberoi said that their approach was very simple. “We hold camps for the disabled from time to time. In the camps, the physical discrepancies of a handicapped person are assessed. Last year, 205 such people were provided help compared to 118 the previous year. We are also imparting free vocational training in our
centres. Our aim is to make them independent and put them in the mainstream of society; keeping this in mind, we are running various courses for them like toy-making, sewing, embroidery, beauty culture, painting, etc.” About seven per cent of our population suffer from some sort of physical challenge. Due to ignorance, lack of infrastructure and motivation, it is quite difficult to cater to the needs of these people. For finance, we are at the mercy of different government agencies. Some help comes through our membership fees from thousands of members across the country and abroad. We are also looking for aids from the foreign agencies, he said. |
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Brahma Baba’s message underlines stoicism Rewari, January 17 It is being celebrated as Brahma Baba’s Smriti Divas throughout India and 87 other countries where about 6,000 branches of the Vishwa Vidyalaya (PBKIV) are devoutly engaged in the moral and spiritual uplift of mankind. Owing to the Baba’s, guidance and inspirational incentive, lakhs of youths are devoted to community service in diverse areas with an exemplary dedication at these centres. Commenting on the Baba’s stature and message, Brij Mohan Anand, Editor of Purity, the journal of the Vishwa Vidyalaya (PBKIV), said Brahma Baba virtually strode like a colossus over the domains of spiritualism for more than three decades. Baba said that the greatest renunciation is to abdicate even the slightest thought of name, fame and glory. He wanted us to maintain equanimity in praise and defamation, victory and defeat, humiliation and respect, Brij Mohan Anand said. Keeping an eye on the increasing moral degeneration in the present era, Baba laid stress on purity in life and exhorted everyone to observe complete ‘brahmacharya’ (celibacy) in thought, word and deed. He said that lust is enemy number one of the soul. Baba taught the young generation (Kumars and Kumaris) to lead a life of total celibacy and simplicity to enable them utilise their energy for the uplift of mankind. |
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SPEAKING
OUT
I have gone through the news report in the Tribune, “UT, Amritsar, Patiala varsities get 5-star status” (December 23, 2002). The report was based on `Higher Education Summit’ organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) at Chandigarh on December 20-21, 2002. I was one of the participants at this conference. I also read the letter of Kanwarjit Singh from Patiala in reference to the above news report under the title, “Five-star universities: So many”? (December 28, 2002). Mr Singh said that “It is not uncommon to hear that five-star treatment and expensive gifts are doled out to the visiting peers.... NAAC is a placement body for retired teachers...well meaning teachers should be appointed as peers so that we know the true state of affairs of our institutions and the academic world.” The assessment team is given five-star treatment. “The UGC has made it mandatory for all universities to get accredited before December, 2002 and for all colleges before December, 2003.” About 280 universities and 11,000 colleges are functioning in India. The NAAC has accredited 250 institutions since its establishment in 1994. About 125 colleges are affiliated to Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU) and about an equal number of colleges are affiliated to the Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra (KUK). “About 1,200 letters of intention for assessment and accreditation from all over the country” are under process by NAAC. Keeping in view the large number of universities and colleges in India and the pace of the ongoing exercise, I doubt whether the process would be completed in an objective manner by December 2003. My humble suggestion is that the UGC should entrust the job of assessing and accrediting universities to the NAAC, while the colleges should be assessed and accredited by the university to which it is affiliated. The faculty of the university, who know the colleges from close quarter, are in a better position to assess and grant accreditation to colleges than external members appointed by NAAC. O. P. WADHWA Politics of Metro Rail
Indeed, it is a matter of grave concern that a political game is being played between the Delhi unit of the BJP and the Congress Party over the inauguration of the Metro Rail in the Capital. Who can deny the fact that the Delhi Government, led by Sheila Dikshit, has played an important role in the success of the Metro Rail? The Delhi BJP supremo, Mr Madan Lal Khurana, must accept this fact gracefully and not play politics on this issue. He may play his game as and when he becomes the chief minister of Delhi. Until then, he should support the Delhi Government with an open heart. By doing that he will win the respect of the people of the national Capital. SUBHASH C. TANEJA Caught and
bowled The hopeless performance by the Indian cricket team ensured that the Kiwis easily clinched the one-day cricket series. The Indian captain, Saurav Ganguly attributed the bad performance of the team to the ‘state of mind’ of the players. In this connection, I would like to say that cricket has transcended the realm of sport and has become a big business. Corporate giants make use of the live coverage of cricket matches to advertise their products and the players spend more time promoting products like cold drinks, credit cards, tyres, motorcycles, cars, cycles, tooth pastes, shoes, etc (the list is endless) than practising on the field. Whenever one switches on the T.V., one sees Indian players pushing one product or the other. Not surprisingly, our cricket team fails to deliver on the pitch. O. P. SHARMA HDR needed for Haryana It is quite disheartening to know that Haryana is the only state without a Human development report. The neighbouring state of Punjab has already published its Human Development Report-2001 with the help of the Centre of Research in Rural and Industrial Development. The need of the hour is for Haryana to rediscover, reinvest, rebuild and re-model the infrastructure of its agro-industry. Haryana is facing multi-faceted crisis such as absenteeism, alcoholism, jingoism, and casteism. These have proved a stumbling block for the development of a sustainable civil society. It is a cause of concern that a state like Haryana does not have specialised Economic institutes like Delhi School of Economic, London School of Economic, or even Punjab School of Economic. It is a state without theatre, art groups, aesthetics and established culture. Apart from the sunny side of the agricultural revolution of the 1970s, there is little to pass on to our youths. Haryana must seriously assess the current financial position of the state, so as to take urgent fiscal steps to refocus on the development of agriculture. In this direction, Haryana needs to take the help of eminent people and institutions like the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, Mr K C Pant, the Chairman of the Finance Commission, Mr A M Khusro, the head of Agriculture Price Commission, Crop Diversion Committee etc. The gap between the demand and availability of water resources, minimum support prices and similar issues need to be discussed in a comprehensive manner. As in Punjab, there is a model of progressive agriculture strategy and technology. Mere introduction of English language and computer as compulsory subjects at school level hardly show the bright side of civil society. R. YADAV Mata Sundari This is in reference to the report of the NCR Tribune, ‘Guru Gobind Singh’s relics on rare display in Capital’ (dated January 8, 2003). I would like to bring to your notice that Mata Sundari was the wife of the 10th Guru and not his mother. CAPT SURJIT SINGH Cheated and
trapped Bank of Punjab Ltd, Rajouri Garden branch promised depository services at incredibly low transaction cost with “purchases made free forever”. This was the only DP, which made this offer. My family opened 5 accounts with this DP (DP ID-IN 301436). From September 1, 2002 the DP increased the charges on demat services at Rs 15 per transaction on every purchase. In effect, the bank has allured us by making false promises in opening the DP A/Cs with them and trapped us. The bank should immediately provide exit options to us so that we can shift or close our DP A/Cs at no cost. MRS PARVESH LATA |
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Section
144 in Buwani Khera District Magistrate H. S. Malik has promulgated Section 144 in and around Buwani Khera and Siwani in order to maintain law and order situation during the municipal committee elections. All arms licence holders have been asked to deposit their arms in the nearest police stations by January 21. The assembly of five persons and carrying of sword, lathes, knives, firearms or other sharp-edged weapons is prohibited under the Section. |
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NCR BRIEFS Rohtak, January 17 In a separate incident, a motorcyclist was killed on the spot when a TATA 407 vehicle ran over him near the industrial area here. The deceased has been identified as Jai Bhagwan of Mokhra village. He was reportedly coming from Mokhra to Rohtak on his motorcycle (HR 15-5369) while the accident occurred. According to eyewitnesses, the driver of TATA 407 tried to sped away after the accident but he lost control and the vehicle overturned after a few
minutes.
MDU appointment The Vice-Chancellor of Maharshi Dayanand University,
Maj-Gen (retd) Bhim Singh Suhag, has appointed Dr Nina Singh, Reader, Geography Department, as the Director, University Centre for Competitive Examinations in place of Dr Asha
Kadian, Reader (English Department), in addition to her own duties with immediate effect. In another development, a university-level quiz contest on the ‘Role of Haryana in India’s Freedom Movement (1857-1947)’ will be organised on January 24 by the university. The Vice-Chancellor will be the chief guest on the occasion.
No shortage of LPG Faridabad: The District Food and Civil Supplies authorities have claimed that there is no shortage of LPG cylinders in the district and have warned the consumers against believing the rumours about the possibility of a hike in the LPG rates. The authorities have stated that reports indicate that some of the consumers had started hoarding LPG cylinders due to the rumours, which, they say, had been improper. The DFCS has also warned the LPG supply agencies against overcharging consumers on the cylinders.
Youths snatch car Sonepat: Three unidentified armed youths reportedly snatched a Maruti car from Mr Suresh Kumar, a contractor, on the Sonepat-Rohtak road near Sisana village, about 25 km from here, yesterday. The contractor was going from Kharkhauda town to his brick kiln near Sisana village when he was stopped by the miscreants. The miscreants grappled with the car driver. They brandished a revolver and asked the driver and the Mr Suresh to get out. The miscreants snatched the car and fled. |
CRIME
SPIRAL New Delhi, January 17 The Crime Against Women (CAW) cell has claimed that the incidents of rape have gone up even as there was decline in other crimes committed against the women during the year 2002. In 2002, as many as 403 cases of rape were reported as against 380 cases in 2001; 976 cases of eve-teasing reported in 2002 as compared to 581 in 2001; 446 molestation cases in 2002 as against 499 in 2001; and 135 dowry deaths as against 113 in 2001. Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime Against Women) Vimla Mehra said that all efforts were being made in the city to inculcate self-confidence among women to handle such incidents themselves. The police have organised a number of self-defence training courses to the school and college students to deal with miscreants on roads. According to Ms Mehra, the CAW cell in 2002 handled more than 1,000 helpline calls like 57 calls of rape, 51 of suicide, 14 of murder, 181 of burning, 97 of harassment and 45 calls of eve-teasing. Rehabilitation is also provided to the rape victims by the Crisis Intervention Centres where the police with the help of NGOs provide both emotional and psychological support to the victims. |
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Pedestrian, cyclist killed New Delhi, January 17 In another case, an unidentified pedestrian was run over by a truck (HRG-3206) near Majnu Ka Tila in the morning. The truck driver is absconding. A case of causing death due to rash and negligent driving has been registered in Timarpur police station, police said.
Manpower agent held The West district police today claimed to have arrested a manpower agent for killing a job aspirant, Deepak Yadav who wanted to go abroad. The suspect, Hari Prasad, was arrested from outside Bank of Baroda in Kirti Nagar where he had gone to withdraw money. The suspect and the deceased, both belonged to the same village in Gorakhpur district in UP. The body of the suspect bearing injury marks on head was recovered from railway track in Kirti Nagar and a murder case was registered. During investigation of the case, the police caught a relative of the deceased who gave address of the native place of Deepak. His family members who came from Gorakhpur narrated the entire story and suspected the involvement of the manpower agent, police said. The police said that a number of manpower agents were questioned and finally the suspect was arrested from Kirti Nagar. During interrogation, he confessed to killing Deepak. The deceased had given Rs 1 lakh to the manpower agent for going to a European country for job. Deepak and his family members pressurised the agent to send him to Europe as soon as he could. The suspect went to Gorakhpur on January 4 this year and brought the deceased along with him saying that all documents are complete and he would be sent to Italy. The deceased stayed in a rented house along with the agent in Kirti Nagar. On January 6, the suspect took him to a railway track in the area and offered him poison-mixed liquor. Just after consuming liquor, the victim became unconscious. Thereafter, the suspect beat him to death, he police said.
Pirated CDs, software seized With the arrest of two persons, Deepak Sharma and Yashwant Chauhan, the Crime Branch seized 1417 software, CDs along with computer system and CD writer being used for making pirated CDs. The police received a tip-off that pirated CDs were being sold in Nehru Place. A raid was conducted in a few shops and the CDs were recovered, the police said. |
GCCI asks CM to review decision to close Quality Marking Centres Gurgaon, January 17 The president of the GCCI, Mr Arun Jain, informed NCR Tribune that the centres, ten in number and established 20 years back in different parts of the state, had been serving the industrial units, especially the small-scale units, in various testing fields. As these centres were put into operation to help the SSI units produce quality goods, they charge very nominal fees from the industrialists, said Mr Jain. The Gurgaon centre tests rubber and engineering goods while Faridabad has three centres for testing engineering goods, electrical goods and chemical and plastic goods, respectively. The centres at Jagadhri, Bahadurgarh and Hisar have testing facilities for engineering goods. The Panipat and Karnal centres do testing for textile and leather goods, respectively. The Sonepat centre does testing for engineering and chemical goods, informed an officer of the marking centre. These centres provide facilities for testing of raw material of semi-finished and finished products for the purpose of approval of samples. They undertake testing of samples from the goods intended to be quality marked. The small and tiny units cannot afford to get the testing of their products done at private labs, which charge exorbitant rates, revealed Mr Jain. The government must upgrade these centres as the equipment and the infrastructure installed in these centres had become outdated and were rendered obsolete, demanded the GCCI president. At present, these centres were running into losses. But the losses could be recovered if these centres were expanded and upgraded. More qualified staff should be posted there, observed the president. It must also be ensured that these centres received chemical and other required testing goods on time. There was also a large scope to increase the testing facilities in these centres, added Mr Jain. He said the entrepreneurs would not mind paying extra for the testing if the facilities of these centres were upgraded. That way, the losses of these centres could also be checked, expounded Mr Jain. As per the guidelines of the state government, these centres were established to encourage the Bureau of Indian Standards specification in the state. These centres were to help the manufacturing units in general and the small-scale sector in particular in producing quality products. The scheme became a boon for the SSI units, which were unable to produce goods of uniform and standard quality due to their limited resources, as mentioned by the government in a booklet. These centres have been guiding trained technical personnel for using sophisticated testing equipment. They also help the industrial units in getting technical guidance and up-to-date testing equipment. One of the objectives of these centres is to help the manufacturers in producing standard quality goods and certifying them with the Haryana Government Certification mark. Recently, another industrial association, the Gurgaon Industrial Association (GIA), had requested the Director of Industries, Haryana, Mr Devinder Singh, to review the decision of the state government when he had participated in an interactive session organised by the association. Mr Singh had assured the entrepreneurs that he would look into the matter afresh. |
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Customer
satisfaction, ‘success mantra’ of any business Faridabad, January 17 Delivering the talk, Mr M.N. Malik, a management consultant, outlined the strategies and focus areas, which the entrepreneurs ought to adopt to get maximum return from the investment. He said that the customers were not only outside the organisation or the factory but were also inside it. The company management would have to identify the customer among its staff to get a better information about the customer’s needs. He said the business or the manufacturing unit may not survive for long if it fails to understand the customer’s requirement. He said the manufacturers must ensure that the product made by them should match the quality desired by the customer. He said the rejection of the product or service should be minimum as the credibility of the company or brand were at stake. He said satisfaction about a product would have an automatic advantage as the customer would give publicity to about 250 persons around him. The management expert said that the interests of the manpower employed should be taken care of and a loyal staff would take care of the needs of the organisation. With change in time and globalisation of business, the industry should be aware of the challenges and changing environment. He said the scope or profile of the customer had widened and a product made in a small town could find a market overseas if the quality, service and its cost match the international standard. Mr Navdeep Chawla, general secretary of the MAF, introduced about seven new members of the association. The Additional SP, Mr Subash Kasviraj, who was the chief guest, said that the entrepreneurs must keep updating their knowledge in order to stay in competition. Industrialist V N Chawla, S K Jain, Ranneek Prabhakar and president of the MAF, Mr Jagat Madaan were also present on the occasion. |
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Traders
laud tax relaxation Bhiwani, January 17 President of the Bhiwani Beopar Mandal Shayam Lal Gupta said that the Chief Minister had won the hearts of businessmen. The relaxation would encourage entrepreneurs from other states to invest more in Haryana, he said, adding that the
halwais had been given the facility of payment of one-time tax at the rate of Rs 9,900 per furnace per year from April 2002. Chairman of the Behal Market Committee Om Prakash Behalwala termed the relaxation as a new revolution for the traders of the state. According to the Cabinet decision, units of information technology, industries, brick kilns, garment industries and contractors have been given several kinds of relaxation in sales tax. He said that brick kilns with a capacity of over 33 ghori would have to pay only Rs 5,600 per ghori per year as one-time amount instead of Rs 25,000 per ghori per year. A former municipal council chairman, Ms Poonam Sangwan, said that the decision to reduce development tax from 4 to 2 per cent would be beneficial to the common
man. |
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